Polska Revealed: News from our favourite central European state

W* bespoke/
11 Sep 2013
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By Simon Mills

Watch out for Poland. In our Polska Revealed special - also featured in our October 2013 issue - we celebrate the fearlessly talented new wave of local designers operating in the key areas of furniture, fashion, product, glassware and dolls' houses(!). Enboldened by buoyant economy, a legacy of significant modernist architecture in the Saska Kepa area and a bonafide, must-visit design festival in Lodz, Poland design is now on a roll and very much on our radar. With an economic transformation underway, the likes of Warsaw- based fashion designer Ania KuczyÅska believes that the Polish design community directly responds to such exciting changes. 'We are a huge country with population of over 40 million,' she says. 'Poland has so much potential!'. Here we reveal the latest news from this hotbed of creative talent...

The project has been made possible with the support of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, as part of the programme aimed at promoting Polish design worldwide www.culture.pl

ÅódÅº Design FestivalPoland’s third largest city is offering first rate temptations

Now in its sixth year, ÅódÅº Design Festival is firmly established as a key event on the trade fair calendar. The festival, held annually in October under the direction of MichaÅ Piernikowski and MaÅgosia Å»mijska (pictured), presents a wide spectrum of contemporary Polish design – industrial design, arts and crafts, graphic design, architecture and fashion – but its core message always comes via a thematic main programme consisting of curator exhibitions, events and lectures given by world renowned experts, which this year include Jurgen Bey and Deyan Sudjic.

This year also sees the return of the ‘Make Me!’ contest for young designers (we loved last year’s winner, Jan Lutyk’s ‘Ribbon’ stool), and a portfolio review which enables the students and graduates of art schools to debate their ideas with professionals, curators, designers and producers. And the rapidly developing ÅódÅº (locals call it HollyÅódÅº) is also becoming a great place to visit. Be sure to check out David Lynch’s film studio and cultural centre in the old EC1 power station and the new underground railway station. www.lodzdesign.com

The project has been made possible with the support of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, as part of the programme aimed at promoting Polish design worldwide www.culture.pl

Keret House
A compact residence lodged in a crack between two Warsaw buildings

Measuring only 92cm at its narrowest point and 152cm at its widest, Keret House is the world’s slimmest residence. Located between two buildings – a pre-Second World War, brick structure on Å»elazna Street and a concrete apartment block building on ChÅodna Street – Keret House, built in 2012, was initially conceived as a controversial talking point by Jakub Szczesny, of architecture practice Centrala, during the Wola Art Festival in 2009.

The building now serves as a temporary home for travelling writers, starting with Israeli writer Etgar Keret. ‘We believe it will become a symbol of modern Warsaw, engrained in its complicated history. We hope it will show the most fascinating side of Warsaw,’ say project curators Sarmen Beglarian and Sylwia Szymaniak of the Polish Modern Art Foundation.

‘The construction of living space within such a premise is impossible,’ explains the architect. ‘But Keret House is there to contradict that false image, simultaneously broadening the concept of impossible architecture.’ The house will remain in place for at least two years, but could end up staying for good. www.kerethouse.com

The project has been made possible with the support of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, as part of the programme aimed at promoting Polish design worldwide www.culture.pl

Fera bikes’ bamboo modelA single-speed bike made of natural fibres

Fera Bikes is a small, independent Warsaw-based outfit designing and manufacturing bicycles on request. Most of its two-wheeled portfolio is American-inspired; beach cruisers and choppers, with some fixed gear and Dutch sit-up-and-beg styles, all of which can be made to the customer’s tastes, colours and preferences. Wallpaper’s favourite model is Fera’s newest, the Bambusowy Rower, left, a single-speed bike made ââof natural bamboo and hemp fibre.

‘The majority of the raw materials used in the production of the frame are completely natural,’ says the Fera team. ‘Bamboo is incredibly strong and ideal for making bikes. Key elements of the framework are supplemented with strengthening carbon fibre. The Bambusowy Rower has a unique and striking appearance that has fascinated and puzzled every connoisseur of cycling.’ Including us. www.fera-bikes.com

The project has been made possible with the support of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, as part of the programme aimed at promoting Polish design worldwide www.culture.pl

Neon Muzeum
Warsaw’s most illuminating experience

Launched with the objective of preserving the neon signs of Cold War Poland, Warsaw’s Neon Muzeum is part Las Vegas kitsch, part historical project.When the Soviet Union was building its gloomy, often unlovable edifices all over Eastern Europe during the 1960s and 1970s, the locals sneakily added a bit of glamour and colour in the way of neon signs.

The Neon Muzeum’s privately funded documentation project and rescue of these neon artefacts began in 2005 with a huge collection in a temporary space, and this eventually found a permanent home in the Soho Factory, a creative complex in east Warsaw.

The museum’s opening night in May 2012 attracted over 10,000 visitors. The collection includes over 50 neon signs and almost 500 letterforms, as well as an extensive archive of photographic documentation, original blueprints and vintage postcards. The museum also tries to save signs in situ where possible, such as the delightful mermaid on the side of the high rise at 81/87 Grójecka Street, Warsaw. www.neonmuzeum.org

The project has been made possible with the support of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, as part of the programme aimed at promoting Polish design worldwide www.culture.pl

‘RM58’ armchair
Putting Polish furniture classics in the spotlight

Designed over 50 years ago by Roman Modzelewski, the ‘RM58’ is a furniture classic, but it was only ever shown at exhibitions and never mass produced. Now, thanks to the team at Vzór, this elegant, sleek armchair has finally been put into production.

Vzór was established in June 2012 by Jakub Sobiepanek as part of his master’s thesis at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts and was funded by the college’s annual Coming Out prize. The company’s mission is to take great Polish design pieces that have never found a manufacturer and get them produced commercially so that the general public can buy, enjoy and experience them. And Sobiepanek says Vzór’s collections will not just be a series of loosely inter-related products but will be driven by the profiles and offerings of the designers.

Vzór’s ‘RM58’ chair, which is made using rotational moulding technology, will be available in a classic high gloss or matt finish and in a range of colours, including red, black, yellow and grey. www.en.vzor.pl